Art Imitates Life
by At A Venture
Summary: Eric/Sookie. Eric and Sookie have a BTVS marathon, ala Mystery Science Theater 3000. This series is best read while watching the indicated Buffy episode, but it certainly isn't a requirement! This story was inspired by Konfetti's "Know Thyself"
1. Angel

**Art Imitates Life**

_Chapter 1: Angel_

It was a little after seven when I heard a resounding knock on the front door of the Stackhouse family farmhouse. I walked genially over to the door, and stuck my hand on the knob. I didn't peek through the peephole because hey, I was expecting Pam. Pam works at Fangtasia, and she's probably the closest thing I have to a vampire gal pal. I mean, sure, Tara Thornton (though not so much lately), Arlene (really not so much now that she'd started dating that guy from the FotS), and Amelia (my witchy bisexual roommate) are my gal pals, but they aren't vampires and I can't really talk to them about my vampire uh…boyfriends. I mean, I can, and I do, but it isn't the same perspective. Anyway, I had invited Pam over to spend the evening watching my favorite program on DVD, _Buffy the Vampire Slayer. _I figured we could munch and talk and watch tv and paint our toenails. It'd be fun to just relax and be girls for the night.

I should have looked through the peephole though. I mean, it was installed for a reason. People were always coming by unannounced. It'd been quiet for a month and I hadn't gotten into any scrapes or accidents or bad encounters with supernatural types. But your luck always runs out. Eric Northman was standing on my doorstep.

He smiled at me, an Eric sort of smile that makes my knees knock together and my heart pound a little faster. I hadn't seen Eric for a few weeks, and I almost wanted to admit that I'd missed him. Half of me missed the way I felt when I was around him. We'd shared our blood enough that we had this kind of mysterious and magical bond that, frankly, I didn't understand. When he was around me, I felt like I was being held and caressed not by a lover but by a very close friend or protector. That didn't make a lot of sense to me, Sookie, independent woman of the 21st century. When he was happy, I was happy. When he was angry, I was fuming. I felt like one of those clingy, ditzy girls who wait around for their man to come home, hoping for some drop of attention. Gross. I was so not that girl. The other half of me just missed his quirky, confident, jovial personality. Eric is the sort of guy you just want to be around. He laughs a lot. He smiles. He teases you, but not in a frustrating way. A vampire with a sense of humor seems weird, especially if you ever watch old episodes of _Buffy_, or if you met my ex-lover, Bill Compton.

"Sookie," Eric said, tilting his head slightly toward me. Vampires don't shake hands. "Pam had a date, so she sent me along in her place."

"Uh…" I said, trying to wiggle out of my thoughts and address him. Gran would have rolled over in her grave if I didn't invite him in. Of course, he already had that kind of mystical permission to enter. He was being polite. I was raised to be polite too. "Come on in!"

"Thank you." Eric walked over the threshold and I shut the door behind him. We stood awkwardly in the hall while I tried to think of another sentence.

"I hope you didn't have anything too feminine planned. I admit that I know very little about feminine rituals."

"Oh, well, I was going to braid Pam's hair and paint her toenails." I said jokingly, even though that was exactly what I'd planned. Eric's hair was loose around his shoulders. I knew he had a preference for off-beat attire, but I thought toe nail paint would be a little too quirky, even for him.

"Ah," Eric breathed, or would have breathed if he did that sort of thing.

"Can I…get you a drink?" I blinked. Wow, Gran would have been beating me over the head right now. I was the worst Southern hostess in the history of time.

"Ah, yes, thank you."

I puttered into the kitchen. Eric and I had once made love on that table. Well, not that table because it burned to the ground, but a table that looked very much like it. I stuck a bottle of O Negative in the microwave. The last time Eric had visited me, we'd been hiding out from the Nevada vampires in my living room. It hadn't been a very romantic time, but I'd still been in a good state of mind. I was always in a good state of mind when Eric was around. The microwave beeped for several seconds before I came back to earth.

Eric was sitting on the couch when I came back into the living room. He was turning a DVD case over in his hands and reading the plot descriptions on the back. I'd picked out my favorite _Buffy _episodes for Pam, and I'd arranged them in chronological order on the coffee table in front of the television set. I set the bottle down on a coaster in front of Eric, and, after some mental deliberation, sat in the opposite armchair. He looked at me, perhaps surprised that I didn't sit next to him.

"What is this?" He held up the plastic case so that I could see Sarah Michelle Gellar holding a stake on the cover.

"It's a program about a girl that kills vampires, and kinda falls in love with one." I said, trying to break down seven seasons of complicated and dramatic plot into one brief and uncomplicated sentence.

"She kills vampires?" Eric asked, raising an eyebrow. "Interesting."

"They're not really like you…" I said thoughtfully. "Well, mostly."

"You were going to view this with Pam?"

"Yeah. I thought she'd get a kick out of it."

"Will you watch it with me?"

"Uh, sure."

I got out of my seat and took the box from his outstretched hand. He briefly touched my fingers, and I felt a shiver jump down my spine. I had picked my favorite episode of all the seasons first, and it just happened to be one of the most romantic episodes of the whole series. I bent down on the floor to put the disc in, then grabbed the remote off the TV stand and carried it back to my chair. Eric tilted his head slightly and patted the couch cushion. I didn't have an excuse not to sit beside him. Sure, we weren't dating (though that was often the focal point of my fantasies), but Eric wasn't a stranger. I sat carefully on the cushion and leaned against the armrest, tucking a pillow behind my shoulder. With the remote, I flicked through the menu to the episode.

"Okay, so a little back story first," I said before I pushed play. Eric turned to me, listening with the kind of curiosity reserved for those that are actually engaged in a topic. I wondered if Eric got this interested in books and movies too. "This girl, Buffy, is in high school and she fights vampires with her friends at night. She's got these special powers that make her stronger and faster than a human, and she's a good fighter. Anyway, she goes on these missions to stop this head honcho vampire in the town she lives in, and she keeps running into this guy, Angel. She doesn't know anything about Angel except that he's cute and a bit cryptic."

"Head honcho vampire?" Eric asked with a sly smirk. "Like me?"

"Well, I think he's supposed to be like super head honcho, like the King of Louisiana or something. It's not really the same though. He's really evil and ugly and old."

"How old?"

"Probably older than you," I said after thinking a bit. They never said how old the Master was, but since he looked so awful, I figured it was pretty darn old.

"Hm,"

"I think that's all you need to know really. Oh wait, the Master guy…the head-honcho vampire, he's trapped in this underground church by some kind of magic spell."

"I see…" Eric was chuckling a little.

"Anyway, are you ready? Would you like another drink?" He shook his head. With a click of the button, I started the episode.

There was a blip of an opening sequence before the episode even began, and I remembered that this was the first season, before they took that little blip out. Eric looked at me and raised one eyebrow. Even when he looked at me like that, like I was some kind of a kook, I thought he was sexy.

"Sorry, but uh, the forces of darkness?" Eric sniggered.

"It doesn't take itself that seriously, I promise!" I squeaked defensively.

"Right. Right." Eric smirked. The picture changed and the Master was sitting with his boy baddie, the anointed one. Eric made a face.

"He really has no fashion sense," I said thoughtfully.

"Is that blue pleather?"

"I doubt it…" But I wasn't so sure. I tried not to picture Eric in pink tights. Talk about bad fashion sense.

"What's going on with his face?" Eric had tilted his head slightly. He was trying to make out the Master guy through the bad lighting.

"Well, I think it's because he's so old."

"Pardon me, Sookie, but even the oldest vampires do not look like that."

"What about the Ancient Pythoness?" I balked, trying to blot that memory out of my brain.

"Okay, fine, but that's one. One vampire. And she was very old as a human. Are you telling me this vampire was already at death's door when he was turned?"

"He's fictional!"

"He needs night cream."

I sighed and pressed play. I hadn't even realized I'd paused the video. Darla waltzed into the frame and Eric turned his attention back to the screen. "Who's that?"

"That's Darla."

"Nice." Eric took a sip of blood. I rolled my eyes. The credits rolled. This was going to be interesting.

"Ah, that must be the Angel guy?" Eric asked with a mildly impressed air. "Wait, wait, was that it?"

"He's not Superman! I've seen you get beaten up before!"

"That was barely a punch!"

Buffy and Angel were already in the house before Eric stopped yammering. I couldn't help but gaze like a stunned puppy at Angel's naked torso. He really was very pretty. I was certain Eric was watching me out of the corner of his eye. I felt one of those weird blood bond feelings, a sensation of lust that had diddly to do with Angel's nakedness. I adjusted myself on the sofa and tried to concentrate.

"So, she let's the vampire into her house and her bedroom? I like this human."

"She doesn't know he's a vampire yet,"

"Still,"

"At least she doesn't want him to see her naked."

"Oh sure she does. She just doesn't know it yet."

"Pay attention! There's flirting and uh…it's very innocent. She's only sixteen."

"Who are those people? Where does he spend the day?"

The scene had switched to the good old high school library. Eric was staring intently at the screen. He seemed unusually absorbed in the material. At some parts, he laughed, especially when the vampires came back onto the screen.

"They're killing their own kind? Over a human?"

"Doesn't seem so unusual. You killed Longshadow."

"There were other reasons."

"Okay, so you didn't answer my question," Eric said after a few minutes. "What did he do during the day?"

"Well, Angel doesn't have a coffin. He said he was in the closet."

"Comfortable…"

"You slept in my closet once."

"Under it technically."

"Ssh, they're kissing!" I was squeaking like a love-struck teenager. They were kissing. And of course then there was the screaming.

"What the hell was that?" Eric barked at the screen.

"He went all vampy. Think of like when you show your fangs. Except, uh, scarier."

"Sorry, you said 'vampy'? What is this 'vampy'?"

"Okay, so in this show, vampires look exactly like people, like you do. But when they get all excited, they get vampy. Their faces go all scary and they have fangs."

"That, my dear Sookie, is ridiculous."

"I didn't write it."

"It is still ridiculous."

We were paying attention again and Darla was talking to Angel. I couldn't help but sneer a little. Darla was Angel's maker, like the vampire Loreena that I'd killed had been Bill's maker. I felt a little sick watching them. I wondered if Loreena was as bitchy and cruel as Darla. Eric slid a hand across the sofa and touched my arm.

"Is that his maker?" Eric asked, as though he was reading my thoughts.

"Yeah. Darla. I kinda hate her."

"Does she die?"

"Yep." I said, perhaps with a bit too much seething enthusiasm.

"You said this was fictional, Sookie." He was still touching my hand.

"Art imitates life," I said thoughtfully.

"Hm, yes." His hand fell away. I instantly missed it.

I moved closer to him as the plot became a little more intense. Darla was about to do something bad, and even though I knew it, I wanted to be near him. He didn't say a word, but I felt him go a little rigid when Joyce's body was pushed into Angel's arms. Eric slid an arm around my shoulders and pulled me against him.

"He didn't feed from her mother," Eric said more matter-of-factly than sympathetically.

"No, he didn't." I confirmed. I expected him to say more, but he didn't. While the episode played, I wondered when Eric had last fed from a human. He was quite old, and I knew he didn't need to eat often for sustenance. I knew he fed from me sometimes for arousal, but I wasn't sure if he fed from other humans. I tried to turn my attention back to the program.

"So this is like the concluding fight scene part?" Eric asked when Buffy walked into the Bronze. I nodded. I was curled against him now, watching. Eric was so focused that he didn't pull his eyes away from the screen.

"His soul?" he balked.

"Uh, yeah."

"He has a soul? And he doesn't eat?"

"Yeah. That's sort of Angel's…well he does eat."

"That bagged blood in his fridge?"

"Yeah. And rodents."

"Ugh,"

"So this soul thing, what is that about? I don't have a soul. Bill doesn't have a soul."

"It's fictional."

"It's ridiculous. Are they scared of crosses and mirrors too?"

"Well, yeah."

"And the scary faces?"

"They're only temporary."

"The action is nice, but the vampires are very unrealistic, Sookie."

"Vampires are pretty unrealistic no matter what they look like, Eric. Up until a few years ago, they were only story book monsters to people like me." Eric shrugged. I watched Angel stake Darla and I did a little air punch of triumph.

"They're kissing again," Eric said thoughtfully. He was stroking my hip. I watched them talking, all sexual tension and smooches. There was an equally beautiful and quite real vampire sitting on the sofa next to me. And yes siree, I totally wanted to kiss him. I wondered if the lusty feelings were mine or his. The end credits were rolling and I stabbed the stop button on the remote.

"That's a myth too," he said, indicating the cross-shaped burn on Angel's chest.

"It's still kinda neat though. He didn't even say anything."

"Well, I liked this program. Though I would like to call the writers and complain about inaccuracy."

"Do you want to watch another one?"

"Yes. I would like to know more about this vampire with the soul."


	2. Surprise

_NOTE: This chapter is rated M._

**Art Imitates Life**

_Chapter 2: Surprise_

I decided to pause our marathon by getting up to use the restroom. I made a bowl of popcorn, changed into a pair of cozy pajama pants with a flying pig print, and a light pink v-neck tee shirt. After several minutes, I flopped back down on the floor to change the DVD. At last, I rejoined Eric on the sofa. He lifted his arm a bit and, without a second thought, I slid under it. I knew this episode like the back of my hand, and I knew it was a painful one. Being close to Eric would be nice, even if it wasn't a romantic closeness. Heck, that fact probably made it a lot easier.

"So we've skipped way ahead," I said, starting with the back-story again. This is the second season, and Angel and Buffy are pretty much dating now, and they're all tense and sexually frustrated." Eric didn't say anything but I could see him trying not to comment with great effort.

"I can imagine." He said after several seconds of silence. I frowned. So much for holding it in.

"Hey there, pretty girl in her…ooh, who's that?"

"That's the bad vampire for this season. Her name is Drusilla."

"Interesting. I take it she's dreaming."

"Yeah. Not too many monkeys in non-dream nightclubs."

"Well, I suppose it depends on the venue. I see they got rid of the evil powers of darkness bit."

"Yeah. That was really a Season One thing."

"Ah, he's naked again." I said, more as a kind of reaction to pleasant stimuli than any sort of commentary on the program.

"Yes," Eric grunted beside me. He was jealous, just a little. I was jealous of Buffy. I tried not too giggle or think too much about it.

"Ooh, kissing." I was definitely giggling now. Sexual tension! Yay!

"Well, I like that he's insistent. This is that sexual tension thing you mentioned, isn't it? He should really just have at her now. Although it's strange that it's day and he's wide awake."

"Yes, this is the sexual tension thing." I tried not to squirm in my chair. What was I saying about art imitating life? Thoughts of Eric and I doing things in every corner of the house popped into my brain. I forgot where I was. Buffy and Willow were talking about sex. I wanted to talk about sex. Sex sex sex. I squirmed and refocused on the show.

"She keeps saying wow. It's irritating."

"You're so not a girl." It came out stupid. I was obviously steeped in wow territory myself.

"Yes, I know. I do not paint my toenails."

"That's Oz. He's a supe, by the way." I was changing the subject. "Werewolf." Eric made a face.

"He's nice though."

"I think you have a bias, Sookie. You have dated supes. You work for one. They are...I don't like them."

The subject ended there. I was watching again. I always liked Cordelia and Xander. They were another one of those sexually tense couples. I was a pretty sexually stunted teenager when this program was actually broadcast. Of course, I was sexually stunted now too. I tried to sneak a glance at Eric. He met my eyes directly. Crap. I whipped my eyes back to the TV. Hey look, there's Spike. He's grouchy and wheelchair-bound.

"Wow, she's crazy." Eric said with an annoyed smirk. Drusilla was back again.

"Yeah. She's one of Angel's children. Later they talk about how Angel drove her pretty insane before turning her. I mean, she was already off kilter, but he made it worse."

"Some vampires choose peculiar companions." Some vampires meant not Eric. I'd only met Pam, and she seemed okay. I wondered how many other children the Viking had.

"Gypsy?" He was asking. The scene had changed to Jenny Calendar and her uncle. I nodded.

"Yeah," I said.

"I take it there's more to this scene than they let on."

"Well, they kinda work it into the rest of the season."

"I'm not fond of the accent."

"Yeah, it's pretty dramatic."

"So this is going to be bad then?"

"What, you mean the scary music?"

"Usually it indicates things that are bad." He was talking like Joss Whedon characters. I couldn't believe it had affected him so quickly. I stifled a giggle.

"Well, there's this fight thing, but then things are okay again. Kinda."

"Oh, I see, it's sexually tense again. You seem to like the sexual tension."

"Who, me?" We were getting distracted. Buffy was being choked by a disembodied arm. Then they talked about the arm awhile. I was still thinking about sexual tension. It was coming up soon.

"Oh, so it's the end of the world, then?"

"Yeah. They do that a lot. It's kind of a theme."

"Hm. I guess they don't have Anubis Airlines in this place?"

"Sorta pre-revelation. That's post-revelation."

"I guess you're right. I didn't do much traveling by air before."

"What did you do instead?"

"Boat. Train. I got around when I needed to get around."

"I love this part." I had lost his train of thought. Buffy and Angel were going to do the ring thing, and it was all so romantic. I let out a little sigh. Eric tucked me closer against him. I wondered how much of my emotional reaction he could sense.

"He buys her a gift."

"It means something though. It's a romantic gift."

"Are you saying you would prefer a ring to gravel on your driveway?" I coughed. That hadn't been what I'd meant at all. I was distracted by the kissing.

"N…no. I really appreciate the gravel on my driveway, Eric."

"But it isn't romantic."

"No, but it shows that you were paying attention to me. That's important."

"Hm."

I wondered what he was thinking about. Sometimes it'd be really handy to have a filter for vampire thoughts.

"This is the music they expect vampires to enjoy." Eric said after a few minutes. Dru was listening to some kind of gothic music. I shrugged.

"What do you listen to?"

"I really like the music of my people. I have a CD of Scandinavian folk songs at the office."

"Hm."

"What about you, Miss Sookie?"

"Hm? Oh, I like country music sometimes and pop music sometimes."

"This part in the middle doesn't interest you as much as the sexual tension at the beginning."

"Not really. I mean, it's important to the story line. But the end is a lot better."

"Are they getting to it now?"

"Almost." I was watching more intently now. Buffy and Angel were on the run, in the rain. There was something about being cold and wet that was always sexy. Maybe it was the fact that when you were cold and wet, you have to take off your clothes.

"She's getting naked now?"

"See, he's such a gentleman. He's not even looking."

"He is now."

"Yeah but she's hurt!"

"Okay, so this is the sexual tension thing again? It's very frustrating."

"That's kind of the point, I think. It's supposed to make you all, you know, anxious and lusty and tense."

Eric laughed. "Are you anxious and lusty and tense, Sookie?"

"What?" I choked. I was listening to the dialogue and listening to Eric. Yep. I was all of those things.

"What's going on?" Eric blinked. I was in a completely different world.

"What?"

"Sookie, are you alright?" He had turned to me. He was touching my hand, his big blue eyes gazing at me.

"Oh, he's going to lose his soul now because they slept together."

"Oh."

"And what are you thinking about, Sookie?" I shrugged. All those things that involved lusty sexual tension? I was feeling them. I was feeling them a lot. Maybe I shouldn't have watched this particular episode with Eric. I really wanted to jump him right then and there. I wondered if it was raining. That would make the whole fantasy in my head just perfect.

"Perhaps we should take a break," I said quietly. I'd meant to get up from the sofa and splash cold water on my face. I couldn't feel my legs.

"Perhaps we should." Eric confirmed. He twisted around to face me. His eyes dropped to my bosom, then rose to my neck, my lips, and finally my eyes. The lusty thoughts were definitely more intense, but my own anxiety was still there.

"Take off your shirt, Sookie," Eric growled quietly, his voice barely a whisper. I felt my cheeks redden. My skin was hot. I should have said no. Eric didn't have any power over me, and he couldn't glamour me into doing something I didn't want to do. My pink shirt was comfy and light on my skin, as though I wasn't wearing anything at all. I lifted it off and slung it over the back of the sofa. I was still wearing a bra, but it was an old ratty white one. It didn't make me look sexy at all and I would have been embarrassed, but I couldn't manage to feel anything more than what I already felt. Eric pulled me against him and kissed me, fully and gracefully. He was a great kisser, really great. Of course, if you have a thousand years to practice kissing, you'll be great too. Strands of his white blond hair tickled my throat.

"Relax, my lover," Eric whispered into my mouth. He gathered me up in his muscular arms and lifted me from the sofa. He was carrying me somewhere and I wasn't sure where. I tried to remember the weather report. I dreamed of cold rain. Eric set me down on the tile floor in my bathroom. He turned the faucet on with a flick of wrist. Close enough.

I climbed into the shower still mostly dressed, and I pulled him in after me. He laughed in that Eric sort of way, and followed me in. I didn't know what I'd give him to wear now that he was soaking wet. Maybe Jason had left clothes around.

"I wish it were raining," I said dreamily. Eric had removed his shirt, a clean white buttoned shirt. His skin was pink and warm-looking. He'd had at least two bottles of blood that night.

"Tell me what you wish," he murmured as he slipped my pajamas down my hips and tossed them, soaking wet, on the bathroom floor. His lips brushed my throat. I had goose bumps even though the water was warm.

"I wish it was pouring down rain, and we were out in the woods." He was licking drops of water from between my breasts. His fingers released the bra clasp and he threw the garment aside. I found it difficult to form any words at all. "And I'm shivering, and you pull me against your chest to keep me warm." That was preposterous. Even if I was freezing, Eric the vampire couldn't warm me up with his skin. No big deal, I thought. This is my fantasy.

"You take me inside the house and there's a fire already roaring and warm." He'd pulled off his jeans now, and I saw with half-open eyes that he'd worn nothing beneath them. I didn't know vampires went commando. Though if anyone did, Eric would be the guy. He was the poster-vamp for confidence and sex appeal. "And you sit me down on the rug in front of the fire and help me out of my wet clothes." I imagined Angel pulling down the straps of Buffy's shirt. He caressed her skin as though it were the first time he'd ever touched another person. I closed my eyes.

"And even though I'm wet and shivering and cold, you make love to me like I'm the first, best, and only lover you've ever had." I whispered. If I'd been more aware of where I was, I might have been embarrassed, but I wasn't. I was shivering just like the Sookie in my fantasies, and Eric lifted me up against the wall. He wrapped my thighs around his waist and slid into me.

I made a little noise, because let's face it, Eric is a well-proportioned man. I folded my arms against his chest and he held me up against the wall. I kissed his throat and chest. I licked water droplets from his shoulder. He looked down at me and I looked back up at him. Those big blue eyes were bright and glowing, as though there were little fires burning in his pupils. I strained up and sucked his bottom lip, making a point to bite him just hard enough to draw blood.

The Viking moaned into my mouth and grasped my hips with both hands. I dug my fingers into his chest as I suckled blood from his mouth, all the while sinking into his kiss. His pelvis gave a spasm as he came inside of me, and I pulled my mouth away, breathless. He stuck out his tongue and licked the tiny cut on his lip. His fangs were out.

"Sookie," he said. His voice was so low, it made my knees quiver.

"Eric," I breathed. I was almost out of breath and I hadn't even finished.

"I think we should watch another of these programs," he was teasing me. He set me down gently on the floor of the shower. He was going to leave me this way on purpose, shaking and anxious and sexually tense. How cruel!

"Right,"

"Did you have another one in mind?" I nodded. I knew exactly which one to show him. He'd be as anxious and tense as I was now. I'd show him what blue balls were really like!

"Excellent. Let me get you a towel."


	3. Graduation Day, Part 2

_NOTE: This chapter is rated M._

**Art Imitates Life**

_Chapter 3: Graduation Day, Part 2_

I sat back down on the sofa in a nightgown that Eric had pulled out of my closet. It was pale purple and shimmery silk. I'd bought it at Tara's boutique a month ago, on sale, 70% off. I hadn't even worn it yet, but Eric didn't seem to think that fact was too important. He wore a pair of Jason's jeans, which I'd found in a pile of laundry in my old bedroom closet. He refused Jason's accompanying flannel shirt, deciding to go half-naked instead. I sat on the sofa after I'd changed the DVD, and I was in a very grumpy, frustrated mood. I didn't snuggle in next to Eric, but sat in the very tightest corner of the sofa. I tucked my legs up under my nightie.

Worse than the fact that I'd been left high and very not dry was the fact that I'd had a healthy dose of vampire blood. Vampire blood, called V on the black market, gives humans a boost of strength, energy, and more importantly, sexual desire. So, not only was I already squirmy and tense, I was also hopped up on vampire blood. I wanted to jump Eric so badly I could hardly contain myself. But I did. I'd show him.

"So we're jumping way ahead again." I said through slightly clenched teeth. It was difficult to concentrate. Everything in the room seemed to glow and shiver. I wondered if I was shaking. "Basically, Angel went evil after they made love, and he killed a couple people, and then Buffy killed him. And then he went to Hell, and then he came back. And now there are two slayers, Buffy and this girl, Faith. Faith is evil. Oh, and Angel breaks up with Buffy. I forgot that part. And anyway, Faith shoots Angel with this poison arrow thing. And that's pretty much where we're at." My voice was definitely shaky. Good grief.

"Wow. We really missed a lot." Eric said.

"Yeah. Right. I'm hitting play now." I hunted for the button for far too long.

"I'm ready."

"Give me a second!" I snapped. Ah ha! Button. I pressed it.

"Are you alright, Sookie?" The DVD was loading. I gave him a sour look.

"Fine." I grunted. I was not fine.

"Oh right, she stabbed the evil girl." I said. I had forgotten that part too. I usually watched these last two episodes as a set. But I had to get to the part that would make Eric's knees buckle.

"Who is that?"

"That's the mayor. He's evil too."

"Snappy dresser." Eric cringed a little.

"Well you know, evil people have crappy wardrobes." Wow, I was in a bad mood.

"Ah. Is that how it works?" He was teasing me. His eyes were bright. "Who's Wesley?"

"He's a watcher, like Giles. He's a moron."

"Sookie, my lover, can I get you a cup of tea?" Still laughing. Viking laughing at me. I thought about smacking him.

"Like the man said," I grunted, referencing the television. "I want to be tense."

I noticed that sick and naked Angel looked less attractive than not sick and naked Angel. I felt slightly less tense, until I involuntarily glanced at not sick and half-naked Eric. Tense meter rising. I gritted my teeth together. My leg started shaking in that nervous way. Eric reached over and grabbed my arm. He yanked me rather hard against him. I yelped and tried to scramble away, to fume on my own. He held tightly. I was definitely not as strong as full strength vampire. Eric pulled me into his lap.

He was watching intently now. His hand slithered between my thighs. I shivered. I knew this would get him. I didn't realize he would get me. I didn't really care right now though. I heard his fangs extend, a slight clicking noise. He was watching Angel drink Buffy, and I was watching Angel drink Buffy. His cool fingers pressed between my labia and I squeaked. Eric's fangs grazed my throat, but he didn't bite down. I could feel him hard underneath his jeans. I'd never been so worked up in my life.

Blood dripped down Buffy's shoulder from Angel's mouth, and I'm not going to fib here and tell you it wasn't arousing. It was the hottest thing I'd ever seen. My whole body was shaking on Eric's thighs and I'd wrapped my hands around his wrist. I suddenly forgot that he'd already had an orgasm that night. I messed with the clasp on his pants. I was panting so hard that it was hard to think about anything as complicated as a button hole.

"Sookie," he growled against my skin. He wanted to bite me, badly. He was trying to hold back. I wasn't sure why, why he was trying to control himself. I pushed his pants down around his hips and shoved myself down over him with such force that I forgot how badly that would hurt later. He was looking over my shoulder at the television screen.

"It's okay," I growled against his neck. I buried my burning face against his shoulder. I was bouncing in his lap. My knees hurt.

"Lover," he whispered before biting down into my throat. I choked back a yelp and dug my fingernails into his arm. He licked the blood from my skin as it rolled down my clavicle. The wound was already closing. I felt myself let go, my orgasm wash over me like one of those tidal waves. I cried big crocodile tears and they stained my cheeks with big red streaks. The show was playing behind us. I sat slowly back down on the sofa. Eric pulled his pants back on and rebuttoned them. Then he yanked me back into his embrace.

"He's trying to kill her," Eric murmured.

"It's okay. Eric.. I mean, Angel is watching over her." Eric glanced at me. He kissed my temple through my wet hair.

"Would you do that for me, lover?" Eric asked softly. He was cradling me against his chest.

"Would I…let you feed from me?" I asked, looking for clarification.

"Yes."

"Probably," I'd never know that answer for sure, but I had already saved his life once, and he'd saved mine too.

"You're a strange and fascinating human, Sookie."

"Thanks, I think."

"I meant it as a compliment."

"Then I'll take it as one."

"So now, with the music, I assume there's going to be more action?"

"Yeah, they have to stop the apocalypse now."

"At their high school graduation?"

"Mmhmm. The mayor guy is going to become a big scary demon snake and try to eat them up."

"Oh. Oh I like the hummus plan. Have you ever had hummus?"

"Nope. Have you?"

"No. They didn't have hummus in the Arctic. Mostly I had a diet of fish."

"Oh. If you could eat, I'd make you some really good Southern food."

"I appreciate the thought."

"So he's a big demon snake? And he's afraid of germs?"

"Yeah. I wish they'd actually attacked him with dirty Kleenex, but they don't."

"Kleenex?"

"Tissues. You know, when a human has a cold, they wipe their nose with tissues."

"Oh. Right."

"It would've been really fun."

"Is this English man going with this high school girl?" Wes and Cordy were going to kiss now. This part always made me giggle.

"Hah! He wishes."

"Well they're…wait. What is he doing to her face?"

"Well, it's kind of like the worst kiss ever."

"He's slobbering on her like a dog." I giggled. Eric made a disgusted face.

"Tell me that vampires kiss better than humans."

"I haven't had a lot of comparison, but vampires tend to kiss better than anybody. I think it's because you get a lot of practice."

"I was good at it as a man."

"Well, all that raping and pillaging probably helped." It was Eric's turn to laugh. We looked back at the TV. Angel and Buffy were being all sadness and doom.

"He's leaving her?"

"Yeah. He doesn't want to be tempted. He'd be all evil again."

"Right. Because he has a soul."

"Yeah."

"You know, we don't need souls to love."

"I know." I curled into him a little more. I tried to stay focused on the program.

"Oh hey, it's that guy again." Eric said. We were changing the subject. I was kinda happy about that. "Is he going to do the snake thing now?"

"Yeah. See, it gets all dark."

"Even with an eclipse, most vampires are asleep in the afternoon."

"Just go with it. It's fictional."

"But if its gonna imitate real things…hey look, he's a snake."

"Yeah. He eats people now."

"Ooh, they're all organized like an army. That's different."

"I like how they do the flaming arrows and some of the vamps go all dusty."

"That's inaccurate as well, as you may recall."

"I like the dust more than what actually happens."

"It's certainly cleaner."

"So the snake thing still speaks English?"

"It's the magic of magic, I think."

"Television has gotten much better with the special effects since this program aired."

"This was on television when I was in high school."

"So the answer is yes, then?"

"Yes.

"And it's over now?"

"Well, Angel says goodbye first."

"Are they going to kiss again?"

"I wish they would, but no."

Eric's lips brushed my cheek. I smiled. Sure, I hadn't expected all the crazy that we'd been through that night, and I'd probably really regret it later, but wow. I could definitely put off toe nail painting for another night.

"It ends rather sadly, doesn't it?"

"Kinda. There's a quip at the end, but mostly it's a downer."

"I'm glad you invited me in tonight, Sookie. Although, I hope you hadn't planned to do this with Pam."

"Nope. We were just going to talk about you."

"About me?"

"Yeah. Girls usually gossip about the men in their lives."

"And what would you say about me, my lover?" I thought about tact. He'd just seen me cry like a little girl. Screw tact.

"That getting mixed up with you is a huge mistake, that I love being with you but I don't really know how much of it is you and how much of it is the blood bond thing, and that you're great in the sack but I don't know if you actually care about me at all."

Eric raised both eyebrows. I got down from his lap to shut off the television. It was getting late.

"You'd talk to Pam about these things?"

"She knows you better than anyone."

I stood over him and he got to his feet.

"We should talk more about this, Sookie."

"Yeah, but not now. I'm kicking you out. I have to work tomorrow."

"Sookie," he sighed. He pulled me against him. I shut my eyes when he kissed me. I struggled with my resolve.

"I really need to be in bed now, Eric." I frowned. Eric nodded and walked to the door. I followed him out.

"Sleep well, my lover." His voice was so smooth. Some part of me wanted him to refuse to leave. He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed my open palm and each finger. Then he drifted down the stairs to his car.

I shut the door and thought about calling Pam.


End file.
